Partitioned beverage cooler

ABSTRACT

A cooler for storing cans, beverages and the like is divided into a plurality of compartments. Each compartment has a spring-loaded platform therein which biases containers in the compartment upwardly for easy access via the top of the cooler. The cooler can include a translucent wall so the contents of the cooler can be viewed without opening the cooler.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the general art of containers, and tothe particular field of coolers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Insulated coolers for transporting canned drinks and food are a fixtureof American culture and are practically required equipment for picnics,sporting events and other outdoor activities. Insulated coolers are alsoutilized in industrial applications. For example, coolers are used totransport medical supplies and samples for scientific analysis, such assoil samples for environmental testing.

The myriad of potential uses for coolers fueled an almost endlessvariation in their design. Coolers act as armrests in vehicles. Coolersare designed to wrap around the torso like a hiker's “fanny pack”. Thereare very large coolers and very small coolers. The majority of thesecoolers, however, all share one thing in common: they have an insulatedbody presenting an open interior space in which ice and one or morearticles to be cooled are stored. They also contain a cavity, usuallyrectangular, that holds both the material to be cooled (i.e., candrinks) and the refrigerant (i.e., ice or a frozen insert). Thesecoolers also share the common design feature of some type of hingedcover, also formed of insulative material, which is provided on thecooler for closing the interior space in order to maintain thetemperature of the articles in the cooler. The lid is intended to extendto life of the refrigerant by reducing heat transfer between the ambienttemperature and the refrigerant. Handles are usually secured to orformed in the cooler for facilitating transportation thereof, and adrain may be fitted in the body for draining water and other liquidsfrom the cooler without opening the cover.

Unfortunately, the lid, along with the body of the cooler, hides thecontents of the cooler. This limitation of known coolers is oftenbothersome when coolers are used at sporting events or other areas withentrance restrictions. For example, many sporting events will allowspectators to carry coolers with soft drinks but not alcoholicbeverages. Enclosed coolers are therefore often the subject of a timeconsuming search by security personnel.

Additionally, the ice that is usually the refrigerant of choice for mostcoolers eventually melts resulting in cold wet hands or wet food. Iffrozen inserts are used instead of ice, care must be taken to ensurethat the contents of the cooler remain in contact with the insertsotherwise insufficient cooling will take place. Furthermore, suchinserts often take up a great deal of space thereby limiting the amountof space available for food. Still further, if the contents of thecooler are not readily visible, a person will be forced to fish aboutwith his or her hand in the cold and wet environment of the cooler totry to find the beverage of choice. This may result in allowing heat toenter the cooler thereby further melting the cooling media and mayresult in frustration if the beverage cannot be located.

Accordingly, a need exists for a cooler that does not possess thelimitations stated above. In particular, a need exists for a cooler thatallows its contents to be visible at all times, if desired.Additionally, this cooler should provide ready access to the beveragesor food items stored in the cooler.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The above-discussed disadvantages of the prior art are overcome by acooler for storing cans, beverages and the like which is divided into aplurality of compartments. Each compartment has a spring-loaded platformtherein which biases containers in the compartment upwardly for easyaccess via the top of the cooler. The cooler can include a translucentwall so the contents of the cooler can be viewed without opening thecooler.

Using the cooler embodying the present invention will permit a user toremove a beverage container from the cooler without having to place hisor her hand into the ice contained in the cooler and fish around in theice to find a beverage. The user can also easily view the selection ofbeverages so the guess work is removed from selecting a beverage. Thetranslucent wall of the cooler also allows a user to view the contentsof the cooler without opening the cooler. This not only further relievesthe guesswork associated with selecting a drink from a cooler, it allowsthe cooler to remain closed longer as a user will know if the coolerstill contains the beverage he or she is seeking without opening thecooler. Opening a cooler allows heat to flow into the cooler from theenvironment thereby melting ice or other such substances contained inthe cooler. Therefore, if a user knows that the beverage he or she isseeking is not contained in the cooler, he or she will not open thecooler and keep the cooler open for a long period of time while theylook for a beverage that may not even be in the cooler.

Other systems, methods, features, and advantages of the invention willbe, or will become, apparent to one with skill in the art uponexamination of the following figures and detailed description. It isintended that all such additional systems, methods, features, andadvantages be included within this description, be within the scope ofthe invention, and be protected by the following claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

The invention can be better understood with reference to the followingdrawings and description. The components in the figures are notnecessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustratingthe principles of the invention. Moreover, in the figures, likereferenced numerals designate corresponding parts throughout thedifferent views.

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a cooler embodying the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of a cooler embodying the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the figures, it can be understood that the presentinvention is embodied in a cooler 10 which comprises a housing 12 thatis formed of the materials usually associated with coolers. Housing 12has a first end 14 that is a top end when the cooler is in use, andwhich has the usual hinged top or the like. The hinged top is of thetype usually associated with coolers and thus will not be furtherdiscussed. However, those skilled in the art will understand that thetop is opened and closed to gain access to housing 12. Suitable locksand handles can also be included on housing 12.

Housing 12 further includes a second end 16 which is a bottom end whenthe cooler is in use. Again, suitable wheels or supports can be includedon the bottom end. Housing 12 has a height dimension 18 which extendsbetween first end 14 and second end 16. Housing 12 also has a first sidewall 20, a second side wall 22 and a width dimension 24 that extendsbetween first side wall 20 and second side wall 22.

A front wall 26 extends between first end 14, second end 16 and betweenthe first and second side walls. Front wall 26 is translucent asindicated in FIG. 1. A plurality of divider walls 30-34 are mounted inthe housing to extend from bottom end 16 toward top end 14. Each dividerwall has a first end 40 which is unitary with bottom end 16 of thehousing, a second end 42 which is spaced apart from bottom end 16 of thehousing and from top end 14 of the housing.

Each divider wall has a height dimension 44 that extends between firstend 40 of the divider wall and second end 42 of the divider wall. Heightdimension 44 of each divider wall is less than height dimension 18 ofthe housing. The divider walls are spaced apart from each other in thedirection of the width dimension of the housing to divide the housinginto a plurality of compartments 50-56. A platform, such as platform 60in compartment 50, is movably mounted in each compartment. As indicatedby double-headed arrow 62, each platform is movable in the direction ofthe height dimension of the housing.

A spring, such as spring 70 in compartment 54, is interposed between theplatform in the associated compartment and the bottom end of thehousing. Each spring biases the platform associated therewith away fromthe bottom end of the housing towards the top end of the housing.

Use of the cooler can be understood from the teaching of the foregoing.A plurality of containers, such as beverage containers B1, B2 and B3,are loaded into the compartments of the housing. As can be understoodfrom FIGS. 1 and 2, the cooler can have as many compartments as desiredwith the different compartments being designated by the prime notationin FIG. 2. The weight of the beverage containers forces the platformsdownwardly toward bottom end 16 of the housing. A user simply opens thetop of the cooler and selects the beverage he wishes and removes thatbeverage container. Removing the beverage container allows the spring inthe associated compartment to move the remaining containers upwardlyinto a location for easy removal. Ice or the like can be placed in thehousing to fill the compartments to keep those compartments cool. As canalso be understood from FIG. 2, beverage containers of various sizes canbe accommodated by cooler 10. Also, a user can see what beverages arestill in the cooler by simply looking through translucent wall 26without opening the cooler. This will save the cooling media as well assaving the potential user time and effort in groping through anice-filled cooler looking for a particular beverage.

While various embodiments of the invention have been described, it willbe apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many moreembodiments and implementations are possible within the scope of thisinvention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be restricted except inlight of the attached claims and their equivalents.

1. A cooler comprising: A) a housing having (1) a first end that is atop end when the cooler is in use, (2) a second end which is a bottomend when the cooler is in use, (3) a height dimension which extendsbetween the first end and the second end, (4) a first side wall, (5) asecond side wall, (6) a width dimension that extends between the firstand second side walls, and (7) a front wall which extends between thefirst end the second end and between the first and second side walls,the front wall being translucent; B) a plurality of divider wallsmounted in the housing to extend from the bottom end toward the top end,each divider wall having (1) a first end which is unitary with thebottom end of the housing, (2) a second end which is spaced apart fromthe bottom end of the housing and from the top end of the housing, (3)each divider wall having a height dimension that extends between thefirst end of the divider wall and the second end of the divider wall,the height dimension of each divider wall being less than the heightdimension of the housing, and (4) the divider walls being spaced apartfrom each other in the direction of the width dimension of the housingto divide the housing into a plurality of compartments; C) a platformmovably mounted in each compartment, each platform being movable in thedirection of the height dimension of the housing; and D) a springinterposed between each platform and the bottom end of the housing andbiasing the platform associated therewith away from the bottom end ofthe housing towards the top end of the housing.
 2. A cooler comprising:A) a housing; B) a plurality of compartments in the housing; C) aspring-loaded platform in each compartment; and D) a translucent wall onthe housing.